Challenges — Urban Air Mobility (UAM)

While UAM holds immense promise, it also faces significant challenges especially in the areas of systems, platforms, and infrastructure safety. Some of the key new safety challenges within this emerging industry include a Different Flight Environment:

  • From long distance flights to shorter hops.
  • From high altitude to low altitude.
  • From large aircraft separation to close-proximity operations.
  • A much higher concentration of aircraft over populated areas.
  • Significant effect of weather on flight safety and operations.

 

In concert with the new flight environments and missions, there will be new Aircraft Expectations including:

  • Increased systems safety requirements for new aircraft technologies.
  • Much higher situational awareness for short-range obstacle detection and response.
  • Dynamic navigation aids for highly connected aircraft in congested airspaces.
  • Greater aircraft require autonomy to recover from problems such as loss of communication, etc.

Projected Benefits of UAM

The potential benefits of successful UAM implementation are substantial through reduced traffic congestion, faster travel times, lower carbon emissions, and enhanced connectivity, especially to urban areas and underserved locations.
 

Solutions for the UAM Industry


Airworthiness

Image removed.Ensuring the safety and reliability of UAM operations is paramount. Evolving regulatory frameworks address unique challenges, including the rise in software complexity and certification hurdles. With over 40 years of Certification expertise, ENSCO is equipped to navigate these challenges.

Our robust project management, diverse technical skills, and adherence to quality standards, such as DO-178 and DO-254, ensure compliance with Airworthiness Safety requirements. Having worked on numerous commercial and military programs, we possess extensive experience in developing and certifying complex avionics systems. Our collaborations with regulatory authorities like the FAA, EASA, and Transport Canada enable us to provide innovative and streamlined Certification Solutions tailored to the UAM market.

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HMI Tools

Image removed.With the rise of UAM operations in the National Airspace (NAS) comes a demand for advanced situational awareness. Pilots require intuitive airborne and ground-based display systems to alleviate their workload effectively.

ENSCO addresses these challenges by supporting cutting-edge display development tailored to UAM requirements. Our expertise merges electronics and visual displays across various functionalities, including flight controls, navigation, communication, fuel systems, and threat detection.

IData® is a platform-independent solution developed by avionics engineers, streamlining display development across the product lifecycle without coding. This makes it ideal for UAM's Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) requirements.

IGL®, our safety-critical graphics solution offers unmatched flexibility and reduces SWaP requirements. It's a game-changer for avionics, space, automotive, medical, and other industries.

ENSCO integrates its Software Certification expertise with these solutions, offering turn-key display application development tailored to the UAM industry.

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Cybersecurity

Image removed.Cyber threats targeting the aviation industry, particularly in the emerging sector of UAM, have witnessed a significant uptick. This surge is propelled by heightened connectivity and the reliance on external services, presenting an expanded attack surface. Consequently, there's a critical need to implement comprehensive cyber security measures from the inception of UAM operations.

ENSCO stands ready with specialized solutions tailored for regulated environments, encompassing strategy development, continuous compliance monitoring, and rigorous technical evaluations. With an unwavering focus on prevention, detection, and swift response, ENSCO is dedicated to safeguarding UAM operations, fostering a secure environment conducive to the responsible advancement of technology for the benefit of the public.

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Weather Prediction

Image removed.Weather prediction is a critical aspect of the UAM industry, impacting safety, cost, and efficiency. As UAM operations evolve, weather will influence various components, including operations, passenger comfort, and community acceptance. Unlike conventional air service, UAM faces unique challenges in weather forecasting, such as obtaining precise data for low-altitude urban airspace and integrating professional and crowdsourced weather observations.

ENSCO leads in providing weather prediction tools, including MetWise®, designed to visualize meteorological data for critical operational decisions. Our solutions align closely with UAM operations, offering immediate weather event information to support flight and delivery missions effectively.

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Complementary Positioning, Navigation, & Timing (C-PNT)

Image removed.Robust and secure navigation presents a significant challenge to the UAM industry, particularly in urban settings with interference and multipath issues. Unlike traditional aircraft, UAM vehicles demand stringent performance from onboard navigation systems due to reliance on fewer ground infrastructures, poorer take-off and landing conditions, and higher airspace density. The heavy dependence on GNSS exacerbates the problem, as standalone systems lack resilience and redundancy in degraded environments.

ENSCO addresses this with a low SWaP RF-based navigation system, leveraging FAILSAFES™ (Fusion Artificial Intelligence Link Synchronization Array) technology. FAILSAFES utilizes distributed RF ranging links to enhance navigation precision and accuracy, offering flexibility and resilience in challenging environments. With demonstrated centimeter-level accuracy, ENSCO's solution ensures reliable navigation for UAM platforms.

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